Summer Learning Loss – Preventing Summer Slide
When schools let out students for the summer, kids face exciting vacations, swimming, camping, music and family gatherings. However, they also face serious academic consequences if learning opportunities are overlooked. Summer learning loss, also known as ‘summer slide’ contributes heavily to lack of academic achievement.
Johns Hopkins Professor Conducts Summer Learning Loss Research
Karl Alexander, professor of sociology, gathered his colleagues and conducted detailed research on summer learning loss.
The findings showed that, if students are not exposed to learning opportunities during the summer, it could lead to a massive achievement gap in academics. Summer slide causes large learning gaps.
For older students, the gap could mean the difference between excelling in school and proceeding to college or struggling in the classroom to the point of dropping out of the educational environment before graduating high school.
His research concluded that parents, educators, developmental specialists and learning coaches should focus on creating a strategic and highly-focused solution to summertime learning loss.
“Learning is like building a sandcastle. Once you have the right tools, you can build anything. You can be anything you want to be….” – Unknown
Summer Slide Research Statistics
The professor launched his study during the year of 1982. A total of 800 kids from the area of Baltimore were recruited. Each student’s academic progress was closely monitored. The students in the study started off in the 1st grade and the study ended when they were adults. Each student was provided with an achievement test in the spring, and again in the fall.
The test results were evaluated and recorded each year. As the research continued, the students were interviewed, and the parents of the participants were also interviewed. The school year gains were significantly higher than the summer cumulative gains.
Summer Learning Programs and Academic Camps a Must
The research established that students should actively engage in summer learning programs and/or academic-based camps. These are structured and highly strategic. Many students do not have the opportunity to engage in or the exposure to learning that is enriching in their homes during the summer. This is often due to work schedules and parental responsibilities.
However, by enrolling their child in a summer learning program or an academic camp, parents provide their children with the opportunity to learn, experience new things, challenges, and the ability to develop their unique talents. Educational engagement and building excitement about learning is at the core of these learning programs and camps.
Help Your Child Succeed, Academically
If you do not have a solid home-based learning program set up, you should ensure that your child attends a summer learning program or an academic camp.
These summer sessions can help a child refresh on the skills and concepts that they were presented with during the school year and can help a child transition into new skills and concepts that can help them stay ahead of the game during the new school year.
If you have an interest in these types of summer programs for your child, we here at Miracle Math Coaching can help! We offer a comprehensive summer camp that is tailored to the unique weaknesses and strengths of each child.
Resources:
https://miraclemathcoaching.com/summer-bootcamp-workshops/
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/16/06/summer-math-loss
https://reads-lab.gse.harvard.edu/?utm_source=ngnix&utm_campaign=redirect_analysis
